The present invention is directed to a taper-lock anchor and more specifically for an anchor adapted to be mounted in a swimming pool deck for the reception of the support tube of a starting platform of the type used for swimming races.
Starting platforms for swimming races have been used for many years and various systems have been employed for anchoring the starting platforms to the pool deck. Very few swimming pools are dedicated exclusively to racing and it is necessary for the starting platforms to be removably mounted on the deck in a manner which will ensure the stability of the starting platform. Initially, the support posts for the diving platform were provided with an anchor plate which was bolted to a corresponding fitting which had been set in the concrete material of the pool deck. However, the bolting and unbolting of the platforms proved to be a cumbersome operation and when the platforms were removed, an auxiliary cover was required for the complementary deck member.
In order to facilitate the quick installation and removal of starting platforms, hollow tubular socket members were set in the concrete deck of the pool having a complementary cross-sectional configuration relative to the cross-sectional configuration of the supporting posts for the starting platform. While this provided a much faster changing operation, it proved to be extremely difficult to provide the close tolerances necessary to prevent wobbling of the platform. Various attempts were made at providing wedges which could be driven between the socket and the support post, but such a procedure met with mixed results. Furthermore, if the wedges were driven tight enough to eliminate all wobble, it became extremely difficult to remove the post from the socket when it was desired to remove the starting platforms.
In an attempt to eliminate all wobble, a socket was developed for installation into the deck of a pool wherein the hollow tubular socket had a substantially rectangular cross-sectional configuration. Each side wall of the socket was provided with two pairs of inwardly protruding indentations, one pair adjacent the bottom of the socket and the other pair adjacent the top of the socket. The starting platform was provided with a single tubular support post having a complementary cross-sectional configuration and dimensioned so that each of the pairs of indentations in the socket member would frictionally engage the sides of the post to support the post in a stable manner. However, due to problems involving manufacturing tolerances with respect to the socket and the post, it was still difficult to achieve a completely wobble free installation of the starting platform.
Other types of systems were designed for supporting a post in a socket in a stable manner. The U.S. patent to Ruzicka (U.S. Pat. No. 4,133,154) discloses a system utilizing an elongated tapered socket member having a substantially rectangular configuration which increases in size near the top opening. A collar is secured to the lower end of a post having a complementary configuration to the socket and the post is lowered into the socket until the collar becomes wedged in the tapered socket. In order to prevent wobbling of the post at the upper end of the socket, a plurality of adjustable wedges are provided on all four sides of the post for engagement with the walls of the socket.
The U.S. patent to Lief (U.S. Pat. No. 2,810,598) discloses a system for supporting a post used for store display fixtures. The support base is provided with a tapered socket and the end of the post is provided with a complementary taper so that upon insertion of the post into the socket, the lower end of the post becomes wedged in the socket. Both of the foregoing systems suffered from problems involving manufacturing tolerances which would severely effect the stability of the post within the socket.